PHOTOGRAPHS: ALAMY; MARCUS DAWES; GETTY IMAGES; RICHARD YOUNGOnce, I was described
as having ‘a genetic
predisposition for
rebellion’ – which
matches perfectly an ethos that
guided my youth: ‘It’s better to ask
forgiveness than permission.’
It’s a trait that crops up often
among the many strong women
there have been in my family, past
and present. My great-grandmother
Edwina Mountbatten [the last
Vicereine of India] was decades
ahead of her time in her behaviour,
her beliefs and the way she dressed.
A force to be reckoned with, she
oscillated between wearing ball-
gowns and military uniform and
apparently owned underwear em-
bellished with Cartier jewels. But
it was my maternal grandmother,
Sylvia, who sparked my interest in
fashion from a young age. I would
spend hours with her at her Sussex
home, while she patiently taught
me how to cut a basic pattern
for making dresses, all the while
talking me through its history.
Having married the Sixties fashion
photographer John Cowan, she
would often tell me tales of her
time spent on the King’s Road with
the likes of Mary Quant and Grace
Coddington. Without my realising
it, those stories shaped and guided
my personal style. But I was never
one to be girly, hating it when I
had to wear a dress and begging
my father to buy me camo trousers
from a Mini Boden boys’ catalogue
at the age of nine.Scion of Mountbatten
grand dames who dared
to rebel, Daisy Knatchbull
knows fashion’s rules –
and loves to break them44 Tatler July 2019 tatler.comthrivingmiss daisyFOLLOW SUIT
Daisy Knatchbull (with
William Boughey) at Ascot –
she was the first woman to
wear a top hat and tails in
the Royal Enclosurederful men such as David Bowie,
Beau Brummell, the impeccably
dressed dandy who polished his
boots with champagne, Tommy
Nutter and Yves Saint Laurent and
his iconic Le Smoking.
I always longed to leave my mark
on womenswear but I had no idea
where to begin – the womenswear
space was a saturated one. That’sThere were other influences.
While at Benenden, I did various
internships for fashion publications
before having the privilege to work
under the late, great fashion editor
Lucy Ewing. Lucy was headstrong,
rebellious, innovative and chic (in
the simplest of ways) and I knew
I wanted to emulate that one day.
Always dressed in a navy jumper,
Comme des Garçons trousers,
frumpy socks, sandals and a string
of pearls, Lucy never played it safe- she did things for the energy of
the visual, the double take or the
shock factor of the various props
she included. I read once that she
dyed her mother’s wedding dress to
wear to a party. Knowing her had
a profound impact on my beliefs
about fashion.
After that I started to style my
own shoots as a weekend hobby.
Despite their often unglamorous
aspects, I didn’t mind the 5am
start times, the traipsing around
Portobello, the countless emails to
brands, the steaming clothes and
the running around London till
I was blue in the face. The thrill
I got when a look pulled together
to perfection was more than
enough to remind me exactly
what I loved about fashion. That’s
where I got my kicks and where
my eclectic and androgynous style
began to evolve.
I was inspired by the pioneers of
androgyny: Marlene Dietrich, to
whom wearing a top hat and tails
came naturally; Katharine Hepburn,
who daringly donned trousers
at a time when masquerading as
a man was a criminal offence; Lauren
Hutton who, at the age of 75, is still
my favourite suit-wearing, kick-ass
chick; Bianca Jagger, whose wedding
look will forever inspire me; right
through to Julia Roberts’ Armani
Oscars suit. Not forgetting won-
when I decided to try and move
into menswear. I heard about a job
going in the press office at Huntsman,
the Savile Row tailor, which has
a 170-year history as the bastion
of British tailoring, and whose
premises stood in for the HQ for
Matthew Vaughn’s Kingsman films.
I applied and I got it, and have
since learnt everything I could
about this secret world. Huntsman
serves royalty, rock stars, aristocrats07-19BYST-FashionDaisyK.indd 44 03/05/2019 13:29